Refrigerator car door



'Marcli 3, 1936. w. M. DWYER REFRIGERATOR CAR DOOR Filed Feb '25, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 wow w .H .H. H

Inventor Patented Mar. 3, 1936 UNITED STATES REFRIGERATOR CAR DOOR William M. Dwyer, Chicago, 111., assignor to W. H.

Miner, Inc., Chicago, 111., a corporation of Delaware Application February 25, 1935, Serial No. 7,970

9 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in refrigerator car doors.

One object of the invention is to provide a door construction for refrigerator cars comprising a single door member slidingly mounted on the car for closing the door opening, wherein the door is also mounted for movement in a direction laterally toward and away from the door opening, the door being supported by sets of top and bottom rotatable crank members for guiding the door into the door opening, the crank members being operated by a single manually actuated means for rotating the same in reverse directions for either forcing the door into the door opening or prying the same partly open, the crank members being mounted on carriers slidable lengthwise of the car, and the entire mechanism being so arranged and designed that the maximum projection of the operating parts thereof will not exceed certain predetermined limits, whereby the mechanism will clear the usual loading platform structures and all other obstructions encountered in standard railway practice.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide a mechanism of the character set forth in the preceding paragraph, wherein the several supporting members are all operatively connected to a single actuating shaft in such a manner that each crank member will be rotated through an angle which is less than the angle of rotation of the actuating shaft in moving the door open to a position where it will clear the car wall, thus providing for the required amount of power multiplication to free the door from the door opening and permit mounting of the sliding carriers and supporting tracks therefor closely adjacent to the side of the car in a position where the same will completely clear the aforesaid loading platform structures.

Other objects of the invention will more clearly appear from the description and claims hereinafter following.

In the drawings forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 is a broken, elevational view of one side wall of a refrigerator car, illustrating my improvements in connection therewith, said view showing the door closed. Figure 2 is a horizontal sectional view, corresponding substantially to the line 22 of Figure 1. Figure 3 is an elevational view of the lower portion of one side wall of a refrigerator car and the lower portion of a cooperating sliding door, illustrating another embodiment of my invention in connection therewith. Figure 4 is a horizontal sectional view, cor- I responding substantially to the line 4-4 of Figure 3. Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure 3, showing still another embodiment of the invention. Figure 6 is a horizontal, sectional View, corresponding substantially to the line 65 of Figure 5.

In said drawings, Ill indicates the side wall of a refrigerator car, the side wall being provided with the usual door opening I I, closed by a single door member I2. As is the usual practice in connection with doors of refrigerator cars, the cooperating side edges of the door and door opening are beveled and provided with packing material. The door I2 is guided for sliding movement on top and bottom tracks I3 and I4, which are fixed to the side wall of the car above and below the door opening II.

In carrying out my invention as disclosed in Figures 1 and 2, I provide broadly a rotary operating shaft A; top and bottom crank members BB and BB; connecting rods CC and CC; and supporting carriers DD and DD.

The operating shaft A is in the form of a substantially rectangular bar having top and bottom end members I5-I5 secured thereto. Each end member has a cylindrical bearing portion I6,

which is journaled in a bracket II fixed to the outer side of the door I2. At the outer end, each end member I5 is provided with a pair of diametrically disposed crank arms I8-I 8. As most clearly shown in Figure 1, the crank arms iii-I8 are spaced outwardly of the corresponding bearing bracket I! and the cylindrical section I6 of each end member is provided with a shoulder I9 at the inner end thereof bearing on the inner end of the corresponding bracket I'l. As will be evident, the operating shaft A is supported against vertical movement by engagement of the shoulders iii-I9 with the brackets I'II'I. The shaft A is provided with an actuating lever 20, which is pivoted to the shaft A, as indicated at 2|, and is adapted to be locked, in the position shown in Figure 1, by a latch member 22 of well-known type.

The top and bottom crank members BB and BB are of similar design, each crank member comprising a short shaft section 23 journaled in a bearing bracket 24 secured to the outer side of the door. Each crank member B has a pair of crank arms 25 and 26 at the outer end thereof, the crank arm 25 being longer than the arm 26. As clearly shown in Figure l, the crank arms: 25 and 26 of each crank member B are disposed outwardly beyond the corresponding edge of the door so that they will clear the same. The crank arm 26 is spaced inwardly from the crank arm 25 and is operatively connected to the shaft A in a manner hereinafter described. The crank arm 25 of each crank member B has a crank pin 21 at the outer end thereof which is rotatably journaled in the corresponding carrier D. As shown in Figure 1, four carriers D--D and D-D are preferably employed, each carrier being in the form of a block slidingly guided within the corresponding track on the side of the car wall. The lower carriers are preferably provided with anti-friction rollers 28-28, which cooperate with the lower track I4.

The connecting rods or bars CC and C-C are arranged in pairs at the top and bottom of the door. Each bar C has the outer end thereof forked, as indicated at 29, said forked end being pivotally connected to the crank arm 26 of the corresponding crank member B by means of a bolt 30, extending through said forked portion 23 and the outer end of the arm 26. The inner ends of the connecting rods are operatively joined to the shaft A. As most clearly shown in Figure 1, each bar C has a pivot opening 3| at the inner end thereof within which a crank pin 32 on the corresponding'crank arm I8 of the shaft A is journaled. As shown in Figure 1, the connecting bars or rods of each pair of bars C-C are engaged respectively above and below the corresponding crank arms I8-I8 of the shaft A.

In opening the door I2, the actuating lever 20 is unlatched from the locking member 22 and swung outwardly away from the door, thereby rotating the shaft A. Inasmuch as the shaft A is operatively connected to the top and bottom pairs of crank members B-B and BB by the connecting bars or rods CC and CC, the crank members will be rotated in unison, thereby swinging the door outwardly on the carriers DD and D-D. As clearly shown in Figure 2, the crank arms 26 of the crank members B are longer than the crank arms I 8 of the operating shaft A, thereby reducing the motion so that the crank members B will be swung through an angle which is less than the angle of rotation of the shaft A. The arrangement is preferably such that the crank arms 25 of the crank members B will be rotatedthrough an angle of approximately degrees, while the shaft is rotated through an angle of degrees. When the door has been moved out of the door opening to a position where it clears the side wall of the car, the door is moved longitudinally of the car along the tracks I3 and I4 until it completely clears the door opening.

In closing the door, the operation is substantially the reverse of that hereinbefore described,

the door being first slid to! a position directly in front of the door opening and then forced into the door opening by rotation of the shaft A through the lever 20. When the door has been completely closed, the lever 20 is locked in fixed position by the latch 22 and the usual car seal applied to the latch. As will be evident by providing for rotation of the crank members through an angle which is less than the angle of rotation of the shaft A in moving the door into and out of the door opening, the tracks and operating parts of the mechanism are so positioned that they will at all times clear the usual loading platforms employed in standard railway practice.

Referring next to the embodiment of the invention illustrated inFigures 3 and 4, the design is the same as that described in connection with Figures 1 and 2, with the exception that each pair of crank members is connected to the operating shaft by means of a single rack bar E,

' parallel to the rack 33.

instead of the pair of connecting rods or bars 6-0. As will be understood, two rack bars E are employed in connection with the construction illustrated in Figures 3 and 4, said rack bars being disposed respectively at the top and bottom ends. of the operating shaft A. As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the rack bar E has a curved rack section 33 between the ends thereof and is provided with a slotted guide portion 34 having a curved slot 35 therein which is substantially The outer ends of the bar E are pivotally connected to the short crank arms 26-26 of the bottom crank members BB by means of bolts 36-36, or any other suitable pivot means, extending through the crank arms 26-26 and forked sections 31-31 formed on said bar. The crank members B-B are swingingly supported on the carriers D-D by means of the crank arms 25-25 in the same manner as the corresponding parts described in connection with Figures 1 and 2. The operating shaft A has gears at opposite ends thereof, the lower gear I31 only being shown in Figures 3 and 4. The shaft A extends beyond the gear I31 and is guided in the slot 35 of the bar E. As will be understood, the mechanism is duplicated at the top and bottom of the door, and the gear at the upper end of the shaft A cooperates with the corresponding rack bar in exactly the same manner as the gear at the lower end of said shaft cooperates with the lower bar E. p

In the operation of the mechanism shown in Figures 3 and 4 rotation of the shaft A will cause the rack bars to be reciprocated, thereby rotating the crank members B and effecting vention illustrated in Figures 5 and 6, the design 1 is the same as that described in connection with Figures 1 and 2 with the exception that the operating shaft is connected to each pair of crank members B-B by a pair of rack bars F-F,

instead of the pair of connecting rods CC.

Each rack bar F is forked at the outer end, as indicated at 38, and pivotally connected to the corresponding crank arm 26 in the same manner as the corresponding bar C is connected in Figures 1 and 2. At the inner end, each bar F is provided with a rack section 39, which meshes with a. gear 40 on the end of the shaft A. As shown most clearly in Figure 6, the inner ends of the rack bars F-F are engagedrat opposite sides of the gear 46 and are guided within a 2 bracket 4| mounted on the lower end of the shaft A. In this connection it is pointed out that the operating mechanism comprising the rack bars F-F and the gear 40 is duplicated at the top of the door. The operation in opening and closing the door is substantially the same as that described in connection with Figures 1 and 2, reciprocation of the rack bars F-F being effected through the rack and gear connection between these bars and the rotary operating shaft A.

I have herein shown and described what I now consider the preferred manner of carrying out my invention, but the same is merely illustrative and I contemplate all changes and modifications that come within the scope of the claims appended hereto.

I claim:

1. In a door construction for refrigerator cars having a wall member provided with a door opening, the combination with a door adapted to close said opening; of guide tracks on said wall member above and below said door opening; carrier means slidably guided on each track; a pair of top and a pair of bottom crank members mounted on the door for rotation on parallel axes, each of said crank members having a pair of crank arms disposed outwardly beyond the corresponding edge of the door, one of said crank arms of each pair being longer than the other and having a crank pin at the outer end thereof rotatably journaled in the corresponding carrier; a rotary operating shaft; and power transmitting means at opposite ends of said shaft disposed beyond the corresponding edge of the door and operatively connected to the shorter crank arms of said crank members for rotating the latter.

2. In a door construction for refrigerator cars having a wall member provided with a door opening, the combination with a door adapted to close said opening; of guide tracks on said Wall member above and below said door opening; carrier means slidably guided on each track; a pair of top and a pair of bottom crank members mounted on the door for rotation on parallel axes, each of said crank members having a pair of crank arms disposed outwardly beyond the corresponding edge of the door, one of said crank arms of each pair being longer than the other and having a crank pin at the outer end thereof rotatably journaled in the corresponding carrier; top and bottom connecting bars disposed above and below the door, said connecting bars being operatively connected to the shorter crank arms of said crank members; and a rotary actuating shaft operatively connected to said bars for reciprocating the same.

3. In a door construction for refrigerator cars having a wall member provided with a door opening, the combination with a door adapted to close said opening; of guide tracks on said wall member above and below said door opening; carrier means slidably guided on each track; a pair of top and a pair of bottom crank members mounted on the door for rotation on parallel axes, each of said crank members having a pair of crank arms disposed outwardly beyond the corresponding edge of the door, one of said crank arms of each pair being longer than the other .and having a crank pin at the outer end thereof rotatably journaled in the corresponding carrier; top and bottom connecting bars disposed above and below the door, said connecting bars having their opposite ends pivoted to the shorter crank arms of the corresponding crank members; and a rotary operating shaft on the door operatively connected to said bars for reciprocating the same.

4. In a door construction for refrigerator cars having a wall member provided with a door opening, the combination with a door adapted to close said opening; of guide tracks on said wall member above and below said door opening; carrier means slidably guided on each track; a pair of top and a pair of bottom crank members mounted on the door for rotation on parallel axes, each of said crank members having a pair of crank arms disposed outwardly beyond the corresponding edge of the door, one of said crank arms of each pair being longer than the other and having a crank pin at the outer end thereof rotatably journaled in the corresponding carrier; top and bottom connecting bars disposed above and below said door, said top bar having its opposite ends pivotally connected to the shorter'arms of the top pair of crank members, said bottom bar having its opposite ends pivotally connected to the shorter arms of said bottom pair of crank members; rack means on each bar between the ends thereof; a vertically disposed rotary actuating shaft on the door; and gears at opposite ends of said shaft engaging the rack means of said bars.

5. In a door construction for refrigerator cars having a wall member provided with a door opening, the combination with a door adapted to close said opening; of guide tracks on said wall member above and below said door opening; carrier means slidably guided on each track; a pair of top and a pair of bottom crank members mounted on the door for rotation on parallel axes, each of said crank members having a pair of crank arms disposed outwardly beyond the corresponding edge of the door, one of said crank arms of each pair being longer than the other and having a crank pin at the outer end thereof rotatably journaled in the corresponding carrier; top and bottom connecting bars disposed above and below said door, said top bar having its opposite ends pivotally connected to the shorter arms of the top pair of crank members, said bottom bar having its opposite ends pivotally connected tothe shorter arms of said bottom pair of crank members; arcshaped guideways on each bar between the ends thereof; a curved rack on each bar substantially parallel to the corresponding guideway; a vertically disposed operating shaft rotatably supported on the door and having the opposite ends thereof engaged in said guideways of the bars; and gears fixed to said shaft and engaging said racks.

6. In a door construction for refrigerator cars having a wall member provided with a door opening, the combination with a door adapted to close said opening; of guide tracks on said wall member above and below said door opening; carrier means slidably guided on each track; a pair of top and a pair of bottom crank members mounted on the door for rotation on parallel axes, each of said crank members having a pair of crank arms disposed outwardly beyond the corresponding edge of the door, one of said crank arms of each pair being longer than the other and having a crank pin at the outer end thereof rotatably journaled in the corresponding carrier; a rotary operating shaft on said door; connecting bars operatively pivoted to the shorter crank arms of each of said crank members; and power transmitting means operatively connecting said bars to the operating shaft.

'7. In a door construction for refrigerator cars having a wall member provided with a door opening, the combination with a door adapted to close said opening; of guide tracks on said wall member above and below said door opening; carrier means slidably guided on each track; a pair of top and a pair of bottom crank members mounted on the door for rotation on parallel axes, each of said crank members having a pair of crank arms disposed outwardly beyond the corresponding edge of the door, one of said crank arms of each pair being longer than the other and having a crank pin at the outer end thereof rotatably journaled in the corresponding carrier; a rotary operating shaft on said door; gears at the top and bottom ends of said shaft; and a pair of connecting bars having rack portions at their. inner ends meshing with each gear, the members of each pair of bars being pivotally connected respectively to the shorter crank arms of the corresponding pair of crank members.

8. In a door construction for refrigerator cars having a wall member provided with a door opening, the combination with a door adapted to close said opening; of guide tracks on said wall member above and below said door opening; carrier means slidably guided on each track; a pair of top and a pair of bottom crank members mounted on the door for rotation on parallel axes, each. of said crank members having a pair of crank arms disposed outwardly beyond the corresponding edge of the door, one of said crank arms of each pair being longer than the other and having a crank pin at the outer end thereof rotatably journaled in the corresponding carrier; a rotary shaft on said door; gears at the top =1 and bottom ends of said shaft; a pair of connecting bars having rack portions at their inner ends meshing with each gear, the members of each pair of bars being pivotally connected respectively to the shorter crank arms of the 4 corresponding pair of crank members; and guide means for holding the rack portions of said bars engaged with the gears of said operating shaft. 9. In a door construction for refrigerator cars having a wall member provided with a door opening, the combination with a. door adapted to close said opening; of guide tracks on said wall member above and below said door opening; carrier means slidably guided on each track; a pair of top and a pair of bottom crank members mounted on the door for rotation on parallel axes, each of said crank members having a pair of crank arms disposed outwardly beyond the corresponding edge of the door, one of said crank arms of each pair being longer than the other and having a crank pin at the outer end thereof rotatably journaled in the corresponding carrier; a rotary operating shaft on said door; a pair of crank arms at the top of said shaft; a second pair of crank arms at the bottom of said shaft; and top and bottom pairs of connecting bars, said top pair of bars having their outer ends pivoted respectively to the shorter crank arms of said top pair of crank members and their inner ends pivoted respectively to the top pair of crank arms of said operating shaft, said bottom pair of bars having their outer ends pivoted respectively to the shorter crank arms of said bottom pair of crank members and their inner ends pivoted respectively to the bottom pair of crank arms of said shaft.

WILLIAM M. DWYER. 

